


Minerva McGonagall and The Rash Decision

by OfTeacupsAndToads



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: BAMF Minerva McGonagall, Baby Fic, Bisexual Minerva McGonagall, F/F, F/M, Female Harry Potter, Girl-Who-Lived (Harry Potter), Like the Very Slowest, Minerva McGonagall Raises Harry Potter, Protective Minerva McGonagall, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:40:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27617786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OfTeacupsAndToads/pseuds/OfTeacupsAndToads
Summary: I refuse to believe that Minerva "BAMF" McGonagall would have never checked in on baby Harry. So this is what I think could have happened. Harry is the Girl Who Lived. The story will go from babyhood all the way through her school years and beyond, with several time jumps. Mature rating is for later chapters.
Relationships: Harry Potter/George Weasley, Minerva McGonagall/Poppy Pomfrey
Comments: 29
Kudos: 247





	1. 1

Minerva McGonagall thoughts clouded red. Albus Dumbledore had lied. She had agreed with him in the end when he said that little Holly Potter shouldn’t grow up in fame in the wizarding world. She had agreed because he had said she would grow up loved and cared for by Lily’s muggle relatives. 

One Sunday during the early part of the summer holidays after Holly’s parents had been murdered, Minerva had given in to her worries and curiosity and had apparated back to Little Whinging. Sneaking in behind Petunia in her animagus cat form, when she picked up the milk in the morning, she had silently padded around the house. Creeping upstairs she had peered into bedrooms, seeing the still slumbering form of Vernon Dursley and in another room the just stirring Dudley. Her confusion started to grow when she couldn’t find any sign of Holly in any of the remaining rooms on the upper floor. The child wasn’t even two years old. She would still be sleeping in a crib, which Minerva could find no sign of.

She silently crept downstairs and prowled through their reception room. Pictures of their lardy son littered every surface and the walls but there wasn’t a single photo of Holly. Making her way out into the hall she finally heard the sounds of a small child and had to dash under a table to avoid being seen when Petunia had bustled out of the kitchen. She had unlocked a small door leading to a space under the stairs and said “Now stop that noise at once! You’ll wake up Vernon and then you know what happens!!” With that she had turned away and walked back into the kitchen to continue making breakfast. 

Heart already breaking Minerva had made her way over to the small door, which had been left ajar. Inside was a tiny little girl, huddled on a thin crib mattress. She was wearing just a dirty shirt much too big for her and Minerva could smell that her nappy needed a change. What horrified her most was that there were bruises littered up and down her arms and legs and a huge bruise and a little blood marking her temple. 

Mind made up in an instant Minerva transformed back into her human self and reached inside to pick up the toddler. She was so light that she had to fight back a sob. It was so obvious that these people were abusing the precious girl. Minerva could not and would not let it continue. Holly didn’t make a sound as she was lifted out of the cubby and held close. 

Minerva walked into the kitchen to Petunias exclamation of “Who are you! What are you doing in my house!” Attention still mostly on the child in her arms, almost lazily cast “Obliviate!” on Petunia. Finally deigning to look at the woman she took every memory of Holly living with them from her. She walked upstairs and did the same to both of the male members of the Dursley’s and then without looking back walked out the door. 

Halfway down the street, holding the small and still silent child close to her, she apparated to her home in the Scottish Highlands. 

Hearing the *pop* outside at their apparition point, Poppy Pomfrey quickly wiped her hands of the flour she was using to knead the bread she was making and hurried outside. Calling out before she could even see her “Minnie! Did you see the baby? How is she doing? Minnie? Oh Minnie! What have you done??” Her words trailed off as she saw her partner walking towards her with the tiny raven haired girl in her arms. Silently she stretched her arms out as Minnie made to deposit the girl in them. She gasped as she saw the state the small girl was in and hurried into their living room. 

The small toddler was still completely silent and unflinching as she took in the new person. She had liked the tall thin lady. She had cuddled her close and had smelled of peppermint. This lady was much squashier and soft and smelled of things that she didn’t know. She liked the smell though. Holly didn’t want to make noise because then she would be put away again and she didn’t want to be put away. 

“Oh Poppet. What have they done to you.” Quickly transfiguring their coffee table into a low cot with sides, Poppy laid Holly down. The small girl curled her fingers into Poppy’s top and she carefully disentangled her. “There, there, lovey, I’m just going to have a quick look at you ok sweetheart? Just going to make some colours over you and then we will get you all cleaned up!” Poppy stripped the filthy shirt from the poor girl and grit her teeth as more bruises were revealed. Her nappy appeared to not have been changed in hours, possibly days judging by how it bulged, but she regretfully ignored it in order to cast a diagnostic spell. 

Minerva came back in, one arm across her chest, hugging herself and the other cradling a tumbler of firewhiskey that she had poured, ignoring the early hour, having determined that it was going to be the only way she was going to get through the next few hours. Poppy looked away from her spell. “Oh Min”. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. “She has two fractures that were never set and are half healed, three cracked ribs, is extremely malnourished and has a raging case of diaper rash. Her head received a blow and she has a minor concussion. How could anyone do this to a child?” Minerva closed her own eyes against her own tears. 

“You wouldn’t have known a second child was living in that house Poppy. She had no clothes of her own, no toys. They kept her locked in a cubby under the stairs.” Her voice had grown steelier as she spoke. “She is not going back there. Not ever. She can’t as it happens. I obliviated them.” Poppy shook her head. “No you’re right she can’t. Can you watch her for a moment? I’m going to run and grab some potions to start trying to heal the mess they made of her and transfigure some of my clothes into diapers and something that will fit her.” She grabbed the glass from Minerva as she passed and downed the warming liquor. “I’ll grab you another of these as well.” Minnie shook her head. “ No don’t bother. I’ll have some tea. I just felt I needed some liquid courage after what I had seen.”

Poppy set the glass on the kitchen counter as she flicked her wand at the teapot. She hurried through to her workshop and grabbed a nutrition potion as well as a bone strengthening potion and some bruise salve. She sent the glass containers floating towards the living room with a “Can you catch those love?” as she bustled back through the kitchen (with another flick at the teapot to have the now boiling water start pouring itself into two cups with tea bags). She went into their bedroom and yanked open a drawer. Digging through she pulled out two sets of robes and one of the soft muggle T-shirts that she likes to wear when gardening. A few more motions of her wand and she had a couple sets of soft white diapers and a comfy little sleeper that looked like it would fit Holly. 

In the living room Minerva held the potions and salve as she looked at Holly. Holly stared back at her and squirmed a little uncomfortably. Her nappy had been bothering her for a while but no one had changed her. Minerva shook her head sadly as she leaned forward to gently sweep some of the child’s hair off of her face. There under the unruly mop was the lightning bolt shaped scar. It started at her hairline and shot towards her ear. “Oh wee one. You’ve had such a hard start.” Poppy came in at that moment and her heart clenched a little at the sight. 

“Now then love. First thing to do is change the poppet and get her comfortable. That nappy has to go.” She set her pile of fresh clothes down and set to work getting the sodden disposable diaper off. Only due to her work with the sickly and the often gruesome sights and smells that came with that had her holding her breakfast down. The poor child was covered in muck and open sores. “Oh poor sweet baby.” Banishing the diaper she cast a soft warm aguamenti and used one of the diapers to clean her up. The mildest scourgify she knew came next and finally the babe was clean. 

“I’m just...” Poppy’s voice cracked “Just going to leave those be for now. Best to air them out until I can make a proper balm for those sores and rash.” Reaching for a new cloth nappy she quickly bundled the tiny girl up and placed a sticking charm so it wouldn’t fall off. She smeared some of the bruise paste over all the marks on her body, making sure that every one was accounted for. Poppy then slid the sleeper on and picked Holly back up. Immediately her little hands gripped onto the witches robes and Poppy gently stroked the girls hair. 

“There, there, lovey. Doesn’t that feel better? Out of that nasty nappy and into a nice soft clean one.” Holly rubbed her face into the soft bosom of the lady holding her. She did feel better than before. Her bottom still hurt but she was nice and warm now. Even her toes. 

Poppy sat down cradling the toddler close. “Min love. Can you go grab the tea and maybe a glass of milk? I’m going to banish the potions right into her stomach and it’s better for her to have something in her tum already” Minerva nodded and walked into the kitchen and came back moments later with the two tea cups and a small glass of milk. She gave a wave and the cot was once again a table. 

Poppy shuffled Holly around until she was sitting up on her lap, cradled in one arm, with her hands still clenched tight in her robes. She looked down at the toddler. “Now then Miss Holly. I’ve met you before but you might not remember. My name is Poppy. And the nice woman next to me is Minerva but that is a terribly hard name to say so we call her Minnie.”

Holly just stared quietly at the two women. They were both being very nice to her. She didn’t want to do anything that would make them upset so she just stayed very quiet and still. They used words and did things she didn’t understand. 

Minerva smiled shakily at the babe before quickly picking up her tea and having a sip. Poppy merely stroked her hair again and cuddled her a little closer before continuing. “Now poppet, would you like some milk to drink? Are you thirsty?” Holly cautiously nodded. Sometimes her uncle would ask her and then yell if she said yes. Scream that they fed her enough and that she cost them too much as it was. 

Poppy smiled and lifted the cup. “Can you sip out of a cup darling?” Hollys eyes welled with tears. She wasn’t very good at cups. She often spilled and made messes which got her yelled at. “Oh no no sweets. Don’t cry lovey.” She set the cup back down and nodded at Minerva. “Would you mind love? Maybe a bottle for now.” Minerva waved her wand and where there had been a cup was now a bottle and Poppy caught it up and offered it to Holly. 

“Would you like to hold it darling?” Holly carefully reached out one hand and popped the nipple into her mouth. She snuggled back into the soft lady and happily drank her milk. The two adults shared a quiet distressed look while this occurred and Minerva's hand clenched on her cup. While Holly was occupied Poppy waved her wand and quickly both potions were inside Holly's stomach with only a little belch from her to show any sign. As Holly's tummy filled she got sleepy. She hadn’t been warm and full in a long time. Just as the bottle emptied it fell from her mouth with a soft pop and Poppy put it back on the table. 

“Oh that poor little mite. I hope she keeps everything down. I doubt she’s even had that much to drink at one sitting in a long time.” 

Minnie's gaze was steely. “I will do everything in my power to make sure that child never wants for anything ever again.” 

Poppy silently agreed. “Let’s put the babe down in our room, and we can plot and plan together.” Minerva’s lips quirked into a smile and she followed the shorter woman into the bedroom they shared. “How about just to the side of the bed, there by the window? You could use my side table love. Just until we figure out something more permanent.” Minerva waves her wand and the side table rose into the air and transformed into a crib, which she set gently before the window. 

“Perfect. I’ll just pop the little love in there and we can get started.” She laid Holly down gently and fetched the light quilt that had been folded at the bottom of their bed. She tucked her in securely and set a ward that would let her know if Holly awoke or was ill. 

Both women walked back to the lounge quietly. They sat in front of their tea cups and assessed the other. Poppy broke the silence. “Obviously we are keeping her.” Minerva's eyebrows shot up. She had thought she would have to convince Poppy. 

Poppy waved at her. “Oh stop, you. I know. I know. The legalities are a little grey but I think in general rescuing an abused child from their abusers will give us some leeway.” She took a sip of her slightly tepid tea. “Who’s left to step up if not us? The Longbottoms are...” she paused a moment, “unable. Sirius is in Azkaban, Peter is dead and Remus has disappeared from all accounts. The list of people that the Potters trusted is not long.” 

Minerva nodded. “You aren’t wrong, and if my suspicions are correct, Hollys placing with those despicable muggles wasn’t legal. Why else would Albus leave her there on the doorstep in the middle of the night?” Poppy gasped. “Minerva he didn’t! It was November! It was frigid! How could he do such a thing? Any warming charm would have worn off after a couple of hours. Oh that man!” She set her cup back on its saucer with a bit of force. 

“Alright. How are we doing this?” Minerva's confusion showed on her face. “Well Min. As much as our love is magical, magic wouldn’t grant us a bairn. So where did we get a baby from? Telling people we stole one won’t go down well.” Minerva snorted a tiny bit. “No Poppy. Neither magic or stolen baby will do. Relative? Best be from your side I think. Dumbledore knows too much about my family for it to work.”

She was silent for a moment, thinking. She laid a hand on Poppy’s knee. “Your nephew Albert passed in the last days of the war. He was seeing that lovely muggleborn girl, Cathy. She passed too, shortly after. Unrelated to the war, but I got the notice in the post. Her family didn’t know who else to tell. We’ll just say that Holly was theirs and staying with muggle relatives but they were unwilling and unable to care for her anymore.”

Poppy thought for a moment and then nodded. “That should work as a backstory.” Minerva let a small smile appear. “Now just to figure out her appearance. That scar is entirely too noticeable.” The smile fell. “Glamour? There aren’t any long lasting ones, but I suppose we could anchor one to her and renew it as often as needed.” 

Poppys mouth dropped open slightly. “Are you or are you not a Transfiguration Mistress?” Minerva's eyes widened and she shook her head. “Poppy. Human transfiguration is permanent. I will not be able to undo what I change in the child.” Poppy scolded “So don’t muck it up! It will not harm the girl to not be recognized in the streets. It will only keep her safe both from evils regarding dark wizards and from interfering busybodies.”

Minerva's shoulders drooped. “She looks so like her parents though. To take that away from her.” Poppy shook her head. “No Min. You mustn’t think that. To be a reflection of her parents would only hurt her in the end. She will be her own person love, not a pale reflection of those we lost. If we are to keep her and keep her safe, she cannot look like the Potters.”

Another sigh. “I know, you're right. Best give it a few days though. Let the lass heal and get used to us. We… We’ll have to give her a new name as well. It won’t take even Filch’s dubious intelligence to put two and two together if a child with the same name and age pops up. Albus must never know. He must have plans for the child. Why else would he take her away from our world? Even if he doesn't, he would likely raise a fuss and try and have her removed again. I’d like to make sure we honour Lily’s choice when we do change her name though. Thoughts?”

Poppy looked thoughtful. “Lily’s family did flora for the girls didn’t they? Her sister was some sort of flower as well?” Minerva nodded. “Her mother's side has always done flora apparently. Her mother was named Rose. Lily told me about the tradition when she was pregnant. Had a list of about a dozen flowers and plants ready before they settled on Holly. I don’t recall any of them though.” She looked a little saddened at that. 

“Hmm.” Poppy thought about it a bit more as they both sipped at their tea. “Oh I know. How about Ivy? Like in that lovely muggle carol. ‘The Holly and the Ivy’? Hardly anyone from our world will have heard of it but I know Lily liked it. I heard it the first time at her and James’ first Christmas party that they held at Potter Manor. That way we always keep a bit of her with Holly no matter what.” 

“Oh that’s lovely Poppy. I agree. I think James and Lily would like that too.” Another worried look crossed Minerva’s face. “Oh Poppy. How is this going to work? I didn’t plan anything, I just grabbed the lass and left. What are we going to do? Neither of us has raised a baby before. Children usually come to us toilet trained and half tame! And what of when school starts! Who will watch over her?” 

Poppy gathered Minerva close and held her tight. Her forehead rested on the other woman’s. “Now stop your worrying, love. We will do this. We are two grown witches who have all the love in the world to spare for a tiny thing like Holly, or Ivy I suppose. At this point that is the most important thing.” Minerva's arms had crept around Poppy’s body and she was hugging her tight. “Though when school comes, I dare say we will need some help. Now I know you have some reservations, but maybe a nanny elf?”

Minerva's instincts were to immediately say no. She had never owned an elf and didn’t fully approve of the laziness she felt that owning one inspired, but as she thought it over she admitted to herself it would solve many of their problems. An elf would be entirely loyal to them and unable to talk to others about the girl if they forbade it. Nanny elf’s especially were kind and felt true love for their charges. Poppy and her would never abuse an elf and they would have the help they desperately would need. 

She pulled her head away from Poppy’s and looked in her eyes. “Ahead of me as usual sweetheart.” She gave her a soft kiss. “A nanny elf is the perfect solution. They will even be able to follow us to Hogwarts when term begins, so Hol-“ she paused and cleared her throat, “Ivy’s care won’t be disrupted. Just her surroundings.” Poppy smiled at her. “That’s settled then. Let’s leave it until a few weeks before school though. Give the lass some time to get used to us before we introduce her to an entirely different magical race. I wonder if the poor mite remembers anything of before her time with the muggles. Our wand work didn't seem to startle her, but I couldn't really tell.”

Minerva finally let go of Poppy and she shook her head. “I dinae know. Do you remember that time we were over for tea and James and Sirius had her on a wee little training broom? The babe could hardly walk but was zooming around the cottage faster than they could keep up with her. Lily was so angry with the lads!” Poppy laughed. “Yes I do. She hexed the both of them once she had Ho-Ivy safe in her arms.”

The two women spent the rest of the morning reminiscing about the parents of the tiny girl sleeping in their room. Both of them making plans for the future, whilst keeping an ear out for sounds of her waking.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minerva and Poppy ensure Ivys immediate safety.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Legalities. I own nothing. HP and co belong to JKR. 
> 
> Thanks for all the likes and comments! I’ve got this pretty planned out, and my characters have pretty firm ideas on how things are going to go.

By the time they had lunch laid out, the two women had finalized their plans. Poppy was planning to go to Gringotts in the afternoon to fetch a few items from her family vault that they would need and talk to the goblins. They had decided that though the transfiguration would take place after little Holly had gotten more comfortable with them, that something had to be done to make her immediately safer. 

That something was to be a blood adoption. Poppy was familiar with the process, though had never seen it done. She was going to get her family’s ritual tools and they were going to perform the spell that night. It was a drastic measure, but under the circumstances it was one they felt comfortable with. It would change Holly's status with the Ministry. Her documents would magically change to “deceased”. To maintain her status and not lose her vaults the Goblins would be informed beforehand and paperwork filed after. 

Poppy’s wards had chimed to let them know the tot was stirring just as lunch had finished cooking and she had gone in to get her. 

Holly had been sitting up in her crib, not making any noises but looking around the room. She was nice and warm and her body felt much better than it had earlier. When she saw Poppy she had given her a little smile and gotten a large one in return. 

“Hello there Poppet. Did you have a nice snooze? How is your nappy situation?” She lifted her out of the crib and patted the small girls bottom. “Probably due for a change.” Laying the small girl on to their bed she quickly had the old diaper off and a new one and her onesie back on. “Now my sweets. Let’s go to the kitchen and see what we can have for lunch.” 

Hollys eyes were a little wide as she cuddled into the soft woman. She never got changed as often as she had been here and her aunt only rarely fed her lunch with everyone else. Usually it was a bit of bread or scraps after everyone else ate. Holly was determined, in her own childish way, to do anything she could to stay with the two nice ladies. 

In the kitchen Minerva was setting the table. She looked up at the duo entering the room and smiled at them. “Hello Holly. Are you feeling better?” Holly nodded at her but quickly stuck a thumb into her mouth. 

Minerva had changed one of their chairs into a highchair and Poppy slid Holly into it. They had decided on finger foods for the girl, and soup and sandwiches for themselves for dinner. Minerva floated the food onto the table and Poppy gave Holly a sliced banana and some toast made into sticks. She was still concerned at the state of her tummy and didn’t want to give her anything that might upset it. She added another bottle of milk and smiled at the girl. 

“There you are love. Just eat as much as you like. If you are still hungry after you can have more.” 

Hollys eyes were wide but she took her thumb out of her mouth and cautiously reached for a banana piece. She delighted in the soft sticky texture of it and squished it between her fingers. As it oozed out of her fist she glanced at the two ladies, expecting them to scold her but they merely gave her kind looks and went back to their own lunches. 

Holly brought the squishy mess to her mouth and sucked as much as she could off. The sweet taste had her quickly eating all of it. She then grabbed the toast and ate it all as well. 

Minerva smiled at Poppy. It was nice to see the lass enjoying her food. The adults enjoyed their soup as Holly drank her milk. The toddler looked around the room they were in. It was very different from the kitchen at her aunts house. There were no appliances, just a sink and lots of cupboards and the table in the middle. 

Everyone finished their meal and Poppy excused herself. “I’ll see you in about an hour Min. You’ll be fine with the wee one?” Minerva just gave her a droll stare and Poppy laughed, kissing her on the cheek on the way out. 

Minerva contemplated the small girl who had finished her bottle and was staring back at her. 

“Do you like stories Holly? I do believe I have a copy of Beedle the Bard and we can read all about Babbitty Rabbitty.” Holly gave her a tentative smile and Minerva took that as a yes. She stood, and waved her wand at the dirty dishes, sending them to wash in the sink. She lifted Holly out of the high chair and carried her into their library, where she sat them down in an old, squashy armchair. The fabric had long since faded on it but it was Minerva's favourite and she refused to get rid of it or let anyone change it. 

She arranged Holly in a comfortable position, curled into her side, and summoned the book off the shelf. She caught the book and slid her wand into her sleeve before flipping through the pages to find the story. 

Minerva was a wonderful story reader. She did voices and made sure that Holly was engaged. She let Holly run her fingers over the pictures and explained what was happening in them. The two spent a comfortable hour together, putting the book aside only when Minerva heard the floo. 

“Come now darling. Let’s go see if Poppy got all the things she needed.” Minerva hitched Holly onto her hip and walked to the lounge. Poppy was there pulling items out of a bag. 

“Found everything then?” Minerva asked. 

“Oh yes. Had to make a quick stop at the apothecary for some Hensbane, knew I didn’t have any, and I also grabbed some fresh ingredients for the diaper rash balm I want to make. I only had dried.” She smiled at the two of them. 

“Did you have a nice time while I was out?” Minerva hugged Holly a little. “We did. We read about Babbitty Rabbitty, didn’t we love?” She said the last part to Holly and she nodded her head. 

“Oh that’s nice. I also stopped at the toy shop just off of Diagon. I couldn’t help myself. I grabbed a couple of things for the little miss. Why don’t we let her play with them while we get everything set up in here.” Minerva nodded and popped Holly down near a corner of the room. Poppy brought over four stuffed animals, all representing the Hogwarts houses and some brightly painted blocks. Tapping her wand on them, she activated the charms, and the animals made noises when moved and the blocks changed colours. 

Hollys eyes went wide and she grabbed for the soft green snake. It let out a little hiss and she giggled. Both the witches stood smiling as she explored every toy and then got to work. 

Poppy went to the kitchen to start brewing the potion that both her and Holly would have to drink. It wasn’t a complicated one and didn't need much time to brew. It would require a drop of blood from them both to finish, but that had to be done within the ritual circle. 

Minerva was busy in the living room preparing the space. She shrunk the coffee table and tucked it into her pocket for safekeeping and then sent all the furniture to the walls so they had an open space in the middle. Holly ignored all of this, intent on making the blocks all have the same colour. She was bopping them on the floor until they were matching and lining them up. 

Within twenty minutes the potion and space was prepared. Poppy placed the small cauldron and a bottle and cup where the middle of the circle would be. She then went and picked Holly up. Cuddling her close she sat on the couch and looked at the small girl's face. 

“Now lovey, I’m not sure how much of this you will understand, but we’ll give it a go.” Minerva came and sat next to them. “Minnie and I want to keep you safe and here with us. We don’t want you to ever have to go back to your aunts family.” Holly snuggled closer to Poppy. She liked that. It was nice here. 

“To do that we are going to cast a spell. It will make it seem like you have always been part of my family. It might change how you feel and look a little and we are going to call you Ivy now instead of Holly.”

Holly didn’t understand any of that. She knew she had a different family before she was at her aunts. She remembered her mumma and dadda and pads and moony. But she really didn’t want to go back to her aunts. 

Poppy continued. “We are going to sit on the floor by the cups and there will be some pretty lights. Then my love, I’m going to ask you to close your eyes tight. Can you do that?” Holly closed her eyes. “Oh wonderful! Good job. Then I’m going to hold your hand tight and we will then have to drink a yucky drink. After that we will all go into the kitchen and have some biscuits. Does that sound ok lovey?” 

Holly didn’t like the sound of a yucky drink but she nodded her head uncertainly anyways. Poppy looked at Minerva. “That’s the best we can hope for I think Min. Let’s get it done.”

Poppy carried Holly into the circle and she settled them on the floor with Holly in her lap. 

“Alright Min.” 

Minerva cast the spell. Waving the wand she closed the circle and a dome of magic appeared around the two. A fail safe of the blood adoption ritual was that it needed at least three people to work. The two to be connected and one party to cast. All three had to be unrelated. 

Poppy pointed out the magic shining around them. “See the lovely lights poppet?” Holly nodded. Her head craned to watch the shifting colours. “Ok. Now can you close your eyes? You need to keep them closed tight.” 

Holly squeezed her eyes shut and put her head against Poppy’s shoulder. Poppy took her hand and cast a numbing charm. She didn’t want anything about this to traumatize the tot, and never wanted to hurt her. Quickly she took a drop of blood from Holly and one from her and stirred the potion. Another flick of the wand had the potion in the bottle and cup and the numbing charm cancelled. 

“Such a good job darling! You can open your eyes now. We have to drink the yucky drink now and I need you to drink all of it ok? It’s not very much.” Both containers only had a mouthful or two. 

Poppy passed her the bottle and Holly tipped it to drink. It was yucky but she drank it all. Her head and fingers felt a little tingly after. Poppy drank hers down as well and called out to Minerva. 

“All done love. You can let down the circle.” 

Minerva released the circle and ended the spell. She hadn’t been able to see through the dome of magic but was relieved to see both of them looking well. 

She walked forward and took the toddler from Poppy and then helped her up. 

“Now then Ivy. Shall we go have those biscuits?

The three witches walked to the kitchen where Ivy delighted in eating the sweet treats. She decided that drinking the icky drink wasn’t so bad as long as she got biscuits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mini time jump in the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new friend is made.

August 5. 

Poppy and Minerva walked together down Diagon Alley. Poppy was holding Ivy close, on her hip. “Look darling! There is the store where they sell the brooms! Min will be so excited when you are big enough for one, yes she will! Your Min loves flying and quidditch. I’m sure she will love to show you all the things in there when you are older.” Ivy twisted to look at Minerva and she smiled and nodded. “Oh yes my sweets. When you are older you can have one of your own. For now you will just have to keep riding with me.” Ivy grinned and snuggled into Poppy again. 

Poppy kept up the chatter, pointing out the apothecary she liked to use for ingredients for her healing potions, and the bookstore where her and Minerva often stopped. Finally they arrived at the EAC- Elf Allocation Centre. it was a business run on behalf of the Ministry to find homes for elves without family bonds. “Here we are Ivy. This is where we are going to meet a new friend for you and for us! Let’s go in.” A chime sounded as the trio walked into the small lobby. A door on the other side of the room opened and a wizard dressed in dark blue robes appeared. 

“Good afternoon ladies. My name is Aloysius Nightshade. How may I help you today?” Minerva stepped forward to shake his hand. “Good afternoon. I’m Minerva Mcgonagall and this is Poppy Pomfrey and she’s holding Ivy Pomfrey. We are in need of a nanny.” Aloysius’s eyes lit up. “Of course, of course. We have several nanny elves in need of situation at the moment. So many family lines expired recently. Please follow me into our salon and I’ll summon a couple and we will see who suits.” 

They followed him through the back door into a room with a couch and a couple of chairs. There was a plush rug on the floor and a fire crackling merrily away in one wall. The women settled themselves into the couch and Poppy placed Ivy onto her knee. Once everyone was comfortable, he pulled out a small book from his robes and flipped the pages. “Hmm. Let’s see. ‘Bitsy! Loz!” Two elf’s popped into the room beside Aloysius. 

The first was a taller elf who looked very tidy in her clean pillowcase. The second was a little smaller and looked to be a bit more anxious than the other. The wizard gestured to the three witches sat on the couch. “Loz, Bitsy. This is Madams McGonagall and Pomfrey and little Ivy. They are looking for a nanny.” Both elves got excited looks on their faces. 

Minerva leaned forward a little. “Please. Can you tell us a bit about your previous families?” The taller one looked at Aloysius and he nodded. “I’s be working for the Crinshaw family. Only be’s old master left now and he’s not be needing nanny elf. Be’s many years since Loz has cared for a little one.” Minerva glanced at Poppy. The Crinshaw family was dark. No proven death eaters, but still dark. She didn’t know how an elf of their family would have been taught to treat children. 

The other elf spoke, in a soft high voice. “I’s be Bitsy. I was be working for the Prewitt family. All gones now. Bitsy’s twinsy boys died in the bad fights and Missy Prewitt all growns up with her own babies. Didn’t want Bitsy though. Wanted to do it all on her owns.”

Minerva glanced at Poppy again and thought to herself that sounded just like Molly Weasley. Though honestly it was likely that neither her or Arthur had the magic to spare to sustain a house elf. Neither was magically powerful and it took a great deal of power to initiate the bond and keep it healthy. Poppy nodded slightly. 

Talking to Aloysius, Minerva asked “Would we be able to spend a bit of time with Bitsy please?” He jumped up. “Absolutely. Come Loz. Let’s leave them be.” The slightly dejected Loz followed him from the room. Bitsy stood in front of the witches. Poppy murmured to Ivy and then put her on the rug near Bitsy. Ivy's eyes were wide and she stared at the small being. Bitsy gazed back at her. 

Minerva leaned forward again. “Now Bitsy. Let me tell you a little about us and Ivy, and you can decide if you would like to join our family. We live on a croft in the Scottish highlands but Poppy and I both work at Hogwarts.” Bitsy’s eyes snapped back to the women. “Bitsy knows Hoggywarts. Offered place there, but wanted family of my own.” She turned her attention back to Ivy who had gotten a little braver and scooched closer to Bitsy.

“Ah,” Minerva murmured, “so no objections to living there for part of the year? You won’t be expected to do any other work than what you would be doing when we are at our own home.”

Bitsy had reached out a hand for the small girl to hold, her long fingers making Ivy's tiny ones look smaller. “No’s. I not be minding. Hoggywarts has a good feel. Lots of magics there. Feels warms always.” Both women nodded. It was what they had heard from the resident elves. Hogwarts was one of the few places in Britain an elf could live and be magically sustained without the bond of a family. The headmaster took their bonds, but on behalf of the school itself. 

Poppy cleared her throat. “Now Bitsy. Ivy has...not had a good life until we adopted her. Her parents died and she was given to muggle relatives who did not treat her well. As a result, Ivy is very cautious among new people and doesn’t speak. We know she understands us but doesn’t feel comfortable talking.” 

Bitsy's face crinkled in sadness. “Poor babies. Bitsy not needs her to talk. Babies are always be telling you what they need without words. Bitsy would be kind to little Ivy, and Bitsy thinks maybe baby Ivy likes her?” She looked at the witches for answer. Ivy had stood up holding Bitsys hand and was gently feeling one of her long ears. She was smiling and looking from Bitsy to Poppy and Minerva. 

Both women smiled back. Minerva answered “Yes Bitsy, I do think Ivy likes you.” She watched the scene for a moment as Bitsy gently stroked the fine brown hair from the girls smooth forehead. “There is one more thing before we offer you a bond. There are certain things in our life that must remain secret. We would ask a vow from you to never speak of those things except between the two of us and Ivy. Is that something you could agree to?” 

Bitsy’s eyes narrowed. “Is it bad things I be vowing? Bitsy is a good elf and I won’t be doing bad things.” Poppy shook her head. “No, no. It is entirely to keep Ivy safe. Things in her past could hurt her future and Minerva and I would do anything to prevent that.” Bitsy nodded. “If it’s to be keeping missy Ivy safe, I’d be vowing. Bitsy being part of the family now? It’s been years and Bitsy’s magic is waning.” 

“Yes, I do believe we will be a good fit. Your duties will be to assist us in caring for and raising Ivy and I would be happy to offer you a bond through me and the clan Mcgonagall. Would you mind fetching Mr. Nightshade back so we may make everything official.” Bitsy carefully led Ivy to the couch between the two women before popping out and back in with Aloysius. He was wearing a large smile. “Ah everything worked out then? Is Bitsy to be leaving with you?” Minerva nodded. “Yes thank you Mr. Nightshade. If we could just go through the formalities and paperwork and we would be happy to add Bitsy to our family.” 

“Excellent, excellent. I have the paperwork right here, just sign by the X’s and I will take the ministry’s fee and can witness the bonding if you like.” Minerva took the offered papers and quill while Poppy passed over the bag of galleons they had brought with them. 

“No thank you Mr. Nightshade. I would like to do the binding surrounded by the family magic.” She signed her name for the last time and handed back the parchment and quill. “Thank you very much Mr. Nightshade. Bitsy will be the perfect addition to our household.” With that she leaned over to pick up Ivy and the three witches plus elf exited the room and then the building. 

When they were stood on the street she turned to Poppy. “I’ll take Ivy and Bitsy home while you grab our orders from the apothecary and Flourish and Blotts?” 

She nodded. “Yes. I also need to nip into Gringotts, but I shouldn’t be long. An hour at most? Then we can do the bonding?” Minerva agreed. “Sounds good love. See you then.” She leaned over and gave her a quick buss on the cheek and Poppy kissed Ivy's curls before turning and hustling down the street. 

Looking at Bitsy, Minerva said “I’ll apparate us all home this time so you have a firm knowledge of the house. It will also get you past all the wards with no effort on your part. I don’t want you draining yourself for no reason before we get the bond settled.” Bitsy nodded and reached up a hand to grasp Minerva's. She spun on her heel and they popped out of the Alley into her kitchen. 

Ivy immediately started crying. She hated the sensation of apparating. Minerva rubbed her back and tried to soothe her. “Can Bitsy be taking little missy?” Minerva handed her over and the tiny girl cried while Bitsy walked around the kitchen with her while talking softly to her. She slowly stopped crying and instead reached up to play with Bitsy’s ear again. 

“Well done Bitsy. It usually takes me much longer to get her calm.” Bitsy smiled shyly. “It be’s nothing. No baby likes popping. Especially wizards popping. Elf popping be less like yours and more likes a quick hug. Babies hate it less.”

“I didn’t know that Bitsy. Thank you for telling me. In the future I’ll be sure to have you take Ivy when we need to go somewhere.” She smiled. “Would you like a tour of the house?” Bitsy nodded. “Oh yes please Missy McGon- McGonni- Mcgoo….” she looked up at Minerva in distress. “Best just call me Min. I’m Professor at school but at home I’m Min.” Relieved Bitsy nodded again. “Yes Missy Min. Where does Missy Ivy sleep. Bitsy would likes to be sleeping there too please.” Leading the way out Minerva said, “Let me show you.” 

She showed the small elf the entire house by the time Poppy returned. She had left Bitsy and Ivy in her room where Ivy was excitedly grabbing her toys. Minerva had magically expanded a cubby into a small room for the elf, after being assured that she didn’t want her own space. Minerva still insisted that she have a door she could close, though Bitsy looked at her as if she was mad. Why would she ever want to not be by the baby. Ivy was her baby now and Bitsy would always be there for her. 

She was sat at the kitchen table when Poppy came through the door. “Ah there you are love. Tea?” Poppy smiled as she set down her packages. “Thanks love. Bitsy settle in all right?” Sipping her own tea Minerva nodded. “Oh yes. Ivy is right now showing her all the toys she owns and Bitsy looked blissful when I left. I think she is anxious to do the bonding though.” 

“I wouldn’t be surprised. Let’s just finish our tea and get to it.”

A half hour later and the women, child and elf were gathered in the lounge. “Ready Bitsy?” Minerva asked. “Yes oh yes Missy Min. Bitsy is so ready for new family.” Using her wand Minerva cast a circle around the group. She held out her hand and Bitsy grasped it. “By the will of Clan McGonagall and magic, I enter freely into a bond with the house elf Bitsy.” The small elf responded “Bitsy freely accepts the offered bond.” There was a flash of magic and for a moment the thick line of magic between Minerva and Bitsy was visible as well as the two smaller lines between Bitsy and Poppy and Ivy. “So witnessed.” Poppy said and Minerva released the circle. 

Bitsy nodded and stood up a little straighter. “Good bond. Bitsy be taking the baby for her naps now. Doing magics be draining for babies, even if they not be doings the magic.” Bitsy reached up for Ivy and took her from Poppy and left the two witches alone in the room. 

Minerva grinned wryly at her love. “Well I guess that is that then.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our little family arrives at Hogwarts.

August 31. 

“Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiivvvvvvvy!” 

Poppy grinned as she searched the room. She could see a tiny pair of feet sticking out from behind the curtain in the lounge. 

“Where oh where could our Ivy be?” 

She made a show of looking behind the couch and under the coffee table before she carefully pulled the curtain away. The tiny tot was standing there with both hands over her mouth and a huge grin. 

“Found you! Oh well done lovey. You are such a good hider!” She reached down and swung Ivy into her arms and gave her a loud kiss on the cheek. 

Ivy cuddled into her as they walked to the master bedroom where Minerva was sending clothes into a trunk with her wand. 

“Just about done love? I’d like to get to the school soon so we have time to show Ivy and Bitsy around and make the introductions. I also want to check on my stock of calming draughts. First few nights away are always hard on some of the first years.”

Minerva smiled at Poppy. Quickly she waved her wand and the trunk was doll sized. she picked it up and popped it in her pocket. “That should be the last of it. All that needs to be done is gather Ivy’s toys up and we can go.” 

Ivy squirmed to be let down and Poppy set her on her feet. She ran out of the room and the two women followed after her. When they got to the room Ivy was making a pile of her toys in the middle of the room. Bitsy was standing to the side looking confused. 

Ivy found her favourite soft toy, a velveteen black dog that she had picked out when Minerva had taken her to Diagon on her true birth date. They had decided after they had changed her looks, that it would be idiocy to celebrate her birthday on the actual day. Minerva still wanted to do something though, so had let her choose anything she wanted that day from the toy store. 

Ivy clutched the dog to her chest and looked at Minerva with watery eyes. 

“Oh poppet. Whatever is the matter?” Minerva kneeled to draw the girl to her and Ivy turned away, protecting her toy. 

Minerva looked at Poppy. She gave a little shrug. 

“Ivy love? You can keep your puppy with you. I’ll just shrink your toys down and then when we get to Hogwarts they will be back to normal in your new room.”

Ivy’s lip quivered. She took a deep breath and then nodded. She flung herself at Minerva and gave her a hug, squishing the stuffed dog between them. 

Minerva's arms came around the child and she stood up. 

The longer Ivy lived with them, the more apparent her abuse became. 

“Oh sweetheart. I promise no one will take your toys. They are yours.” 

Ivy nodded again, rubbing her face against Minerva’s shoulder. She cuddled the dog closer. 

“Pads mine.” She whispered. 

Minerva's head whipped towards Poppy. “Did you?...”

Poppy nodded quickly, biting her lip. “Ivy dear. Is Pads your puppy?”

Ivy nodded again. Minerva gave her a big grin. “Oh that’s a lovely name. Well done.”

Minerva sat on the edge of the small bed with Ivy. “Would you like to watch me shrink your toys? Here I’ll do just one first and then make it large again.”

She followed words with actions and shrunk and unshrunk the little Slytherin snake. Ivy was watching cautiously but didn’t seem distressed anymore. 

“All right love. Why don’t you go with Poppy and Bitsy and I’ll meet you at the Floo? Then we will go see your room at Hogwarts!”

Ivy scrambled down from Minerva's lap and reached for Poppy’s hand, then led her from the room. Bitsy followed after snapping her fingers and sending the mess of toys back to the toy chest. 

Minerva sat in silence for a moment. She was so happy that Ivy had spoken to them. She was furious still at the abuse which had so harmed the small child. 

The fact that Ivy named her dog after part of Sirius Blacks childhood nickname was something to be pondered as well. 

She stood up and quickly shrunk the chest, stowing it in her pocket with the rest of the luggage. A quick glance around showed she hadn’t missed anything and she followed her family to the lounge and the Floo. 

Ivy was still cuddling Pads and Poppy was holding a basket of potions that didn’t do well being shrunk. Bitsy was standing next to them and stroking Ivy’s fine hair. 

“All right my dears. Let’s be off.” 

Minerva picked up Ivy and took a pinch of powder from the pot on the mantle. Throwing it in she said their destination and walked into the flames. 

**************************************************

Settling into Hogwarts was relatively painless. Minerva and Poppy introduced Ivy to all the staff, only slightly holding their breath when Albus met her. In retrospect it was ridiculous as beyond the couple times the Potters had the Order over, and Albus dropping her off, they were sure that he had never paid her any attention. 

Hogwarts herself acknowledged their new family member and expanded their quarters. Ivy’s new room was just off their cozy lounge and met with her enthusiastic approval. Bitsy had a small cubby off of it again and was welcomed to the castle by the resident elves. 

They ate with the other staff members for lunch. Pomona and Filius were delighted with the new addition to the table. Pomona kept trying to tempt her with items from her garden and Filius kept sending tiny charmed paper birds that flew around her plate. Ivy giggled so much during lunch that she hardly ate a thing. Poppy just smiled at their antics and made sure she got a mouthful of something once in a while. The other teachers were vaguely dismissive of Ivy. The last underage child to live in Hogwarts had been Sinistras daughter in the early 70’s.

Hogwarts tended to attract professors who were either later in their lives and past the child having ages, or perpetually single. The other teachers who maintained families, did so off site and simply floo’d out every evening. Not an option for either a head of house or school nurse.

After lunch Poppy disappeared into the hospital wing to brew the potions she deemed necessary for the next week of new students. Minerva left Ivy napping in her room with Bitsy while she went over her first few weeks of lesson plans. 

Ivy woke up crying and she hustled into the room to see Bitsy comforting the wee girl. Ivy stretched her arms out and Minerva picked her up and cuddled her. “What’s wrong dear one? Did you forget where you were for a moment? I know that changing homes can be a bit disconcerting.” Ivy sobbed and rubbed her face against Minerva’s shoulder. 

“There there, lovey. It's ok. Where did your Pads go?” Bitsy quietly fetched it from the bed and handed it to Minerva. “Thank you Bitsy. Here you go love.” Ivy took the dog and her cries became less frequent. Minerva walked around the room with her, rubbing her back. “There we go love. All better.” 

Ivy nodded and snuggled close. “Pops?” Minerva startled to hear her speak again. “Pops? What do you mean love?” Ivy struggled to get down and Minerva set her on her feet. “Where Pops? 

“Pops? Poppy? Oh lovey. She is just in another part of the castle. Shall we go visit her? There aren’t any students about, so we can go for a stroll. Come along. We’ll go find Poppy in the hospital wing.” She reached her hand out and Ivy took it and clutched Pads with the other. 

“We’ll be back in a little while Bitsy. Please feel free to do what you like until we return.” Bitsy nodded. “Bitsy be just visiting with the others.” She snapped her fingers and popped out of the room. 

Minerva led the little girl out of their quarters and through the halls of Hogwarts. She picked her up when they got to the stairs and introduced her to many of the paintings as they walked by them. Reaching the Hospital wing, Minerva called out when they entered. “Poppy! Someone missed you when she woke up.” Poppy walked out of her still room and wiped her hands on her apron. 

“Well isn’t this a nice surprise. Hello Poppet. How are you?” 

Ivy smiled and gave a gleeful yell. “Pop!” She ran to the woman that was momentarily struck frozen. Shaking her head and smiling she picked Ivy up. “Yes my lovely. Poppy! That’s me.” Ivy hugged her tight and then pointed to her puppy. “Pads.” Poppy nodded. “Yes darling. That is your Pads.” Ivy smiled brighter. Then she pointed to Minerva. “Min.”

Minerva smiled back at her and nodded. Poppy squeezed her a little tighter. “Well done darling! That is your Min. Oh well done.” The two women shared a watery glance and Poppy dashed away a stray tear. After months of silence and tears from Ivy this was such happy progress. 

The small girl was silent for a moment before pointing to herself. “Vee?” Poppy gave her a small kiss on the forehead. “Yes darling girl. Your name is Ivy.” Ivy squirmed and Poppy set her down and she wandered around looking at all the beds in the room. She scrambled up on one and gave a tentative bounce. 

“Now none of that lovey. We don’t want you falling off and actually needing to be here. Why don't you and Min go for a walk outside before dinner. I’m sure that Hagrid has something that would be exciting to see.”

Ivy slid off the bed and walked over to Minerva. She gave a little wave to Poppy before reaching her arms up in a wordless request to be picked up. Minerva obliged and they left Poppy to her brewing and prepping. 

Hagrid as it turns out was delighted to show Ivy the new puppy that he had adopted. It was a tiny little dark thing that was in a basket in his hut. Ivy sat next to it and gently pet the soft fur as Hagrid and Minerva chatted over tea. 

“Sure a wee mite, ain’t she Professor. Her and Fang there suit each other.”

“She is a bit small for her age. Poppy has her on a nutrition regime to get her up to weight. Her muggle relatives were… less than kind and rather neglectful. We are very lucky she came to us when she did.”

Hagrid looked up from the young pair on the floor. “Yeh don’ mean…?”

Minerva's lips pinched. “It wasn’t good. But that is all behind her now and we shall all do our best to make happy memories for her.”

The giant man nodded. “Yes. Too many orphans after th’ war. Too many unhappy stories. I’m right glad that little Ivy here ended up with you, Professor. I can see that you have love to give even after… well your past losses.”

Minerva sighed and nodded. “I will always miss them Hagrid, but I have found happiness again. Both with Poppy and now with Ivy. We all should be so lucky.” She took a last sip of her tea. “Now enough of this unhappy tone. You are naming the pup Fang? A rather ferocious name for such a tiny gentle looking thing.”

Hagrid’s face broke into a grin. “Well he’ll grow into the name. I expect he’ll be a right brave lad when he’s grown. Be my partner when we need to venture into the forest.”

She smiled back. “I’m sure you're right. Well miss Ivy. Let’s get back to the castle. I’m sure Bitsy is wondering where we got off to, and there is still a bit of planning that I need to do before tomorrow.”

Ivy kept stroking the puppy and looked up at Minerva with a sad look. 

“Och, none of that miss. I’m sure Hagrid will invite us down again to see the puppy.” Ivy looked to the big man and he nodded, his big beard quivering with the motion. She gave one last pet to the dogs ears and stood. Minerva smiled down and scooped her up. 

“Goodbye Hagrid. See you at dinner.” Ivy waved over her shoulder and stared sorrowfully at Fang until she could no longer see the pup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter gave me grief. I rewrote it so many times. I have so much info I want to get in but it just never sat right. Ah well. The next couple chapters are flowing much better.


	5. Chapter 5

The first couple weeks of school had gone well for Bill. He was easing nicely into his second year at Hogwarts. Yah, he sometimes missed his family but it was nice to have time and space to himself and his dorm mates were loads quieter than his brothers. 

He already knew where all the shortcuts were to get to his classes on time so he allowed himself a couple minutes at the end of breakfast and lunch to have a few extra mouthfuls of food, before dashing off to his next lesson.

It was during one of these break neck races that he skidded around a corner and ground to a halt. He was in a seldom used corridor and standing in front of him, clutching a toy dog, was a tiny girl. She looked younger than his little brother Ronnie and was staring at him curiously. 

“Hullo there. Where did you come from?” 

Bill glanced around, even though he knew that was stupid. The answer to the random baby in the hallway wasn’t going to be written on the wall, and he knew no one else was around. The thought of just continuing to class crossed his mind for a split second but he knew he couldn’t leave a baby by herself. 

The little girl just hugged her puppy closer and stared at him. 

“What’s your name? My names Bill.” He inched a little closer to her. The girl stared at him with her big eyes and then turned around and started toddling away. 

“Hey! Hey wait! Where are your parents?” Bill followed behind her as she took the next corner into a hallway he had never been down. She glanced behind her at him and sped up a little. She pushed open a door and slipped inside. 

Bill approached curiously. Why was there a toddler wandering around Hogwarts? He pushed the door open a bit and the girl giggled and dashed through the room into a connecting one. Bill looked around him. He was in a nice looking sitting room. The room had a couple comfy looking chairs and a settee and on the wall were some photos and there were knick knacks on the mantle over the fireplace. 

The little girl peeked out of the other room and giggled madly before disappearing again. Bill took a couple more steps toward her when he heard the squeaky voice of a house elf. 

“Missy Ivy. Whats have you been up to? Bitsy was off helping Missy Pomfrey for only minutes while you napped and you gets up to no goods? Bitsy had wards up as well.”

The little girl gave another giggle and dashed out of her room towards Bill. She hid behind his legs and Bill froze. The elf that came out of the room after Ivy froze as well. With a snap of her fingers Ivy was floating in the air and whizzing to a spot behind her. 

“Whos you be? Students is not meant to be in Missy Professors rooms. Not ever.”

Bill gulped. Of course it was a teachers room. It only made sense. “Well… um… you see….”

The elf shook her head. “Bitsy will get Missy Professor. She’ll be knowing what to do.” She turned to the toddler and gave her a stern look. “Yous be not moving. Not one inch.” With a snap of her fingers the doorway between Bill and Ivy started to glow and with one more look at Bill, “Yous not move either”, the elf popped away. 

Bill and Ivy were left staring at each other. Ivy gave a big grin and turned away from him to sit on the floor and play with some toys that had been left there. Bill just stared at the ground and let one foot trace the pattern on the rug. Another pop sounded and the house elf reappeared. With a suspicious look at Bill she brought down the barrier and went to sit with Ivy. 

Moments later the fireplace glowed green and Professor McGonagall stepped through the flames. She dusted herself off and inspected Bill. “Mr. Weasley. I had wondered what kept you from my class. Please explain yourself.”

Bill gulped again before quickly recounting his morning. “You see Professor. I know so many shortcuts. I was just eating one extra piece of toast and then I was running, I mean, um, walking with purpose through the halls and I came around a corner and there was a baby! Well I guess not a baby but a toddler. What was a baby doing in the halls! So I asked her name and told her mine and then she was running, well not running, away and I didn’t know who she was or where her parents were and I felt like I shouldn’t leave her alone. So I followed. And then we were in a part of the castle I didn’t know about and then the door was just open and you know she’s awfully cute and looks kinda like my baby brothers age and who is she Professor?”

McGonagall stared at him for a long moment. “In the halls you say?”

Bill's head nodded vigorously. “Yes ma’am. All alone!”

“Hmm. Looks like her accidental magic overpowered our wards Bitsy. We’ll have to work something else out. An alarm or such, so that it doesn’t happen again.” Bitsy popped her head out of the other room. “Yes Missy Professor. Bitsy will thinks on it.” She disappeared back inside. 

Turning back to Bill. “She is Madam Pomfrey's relative. Her parents passed after the war and she came to us this summer. Her name is Ivy. How old is your youngest brother?”

“Two and a bit ma’am.”

“Then yes, she is almost the exact same age as him. Ronald is it?”

Bill nodded. “She’s a lot smaller than he is though. Are you… are you her parents now then? Is she staying here?”

Minerva narrowed her eyes. “A bit nosy aren’t we Mr. Weasley. But yes. Madam Pomfrey and I are going to be raising her, and as such she will live here in the castle with us.”

Bill grinned at her. “That’s amazing! She’s going to have so much fun here! I love Hogwarts.”

Minerva allowed herself a small smile. “Quite. Now since it is my class that you are late for, I suppose it only makes sense that I accompany you there. Come along Mr. Weasley. We’ll go the long way.” She gestured to the door and with a quick glance at the door and the little girl peeking out, Bill gave a little wave and left the rooms. Minerva gave Ivy a warm smile and followed him out. 

*******************************************

It was nearly Halloween the next time Bill met Ivy. He was in the library writing an eight inch essay for potions when he heard a tiny giggle. He looked under the table and there was Ivy. She didn’t have a puppy this time but she did have a small purple ball. 

“Hello there Ivy. Where’s your scary nanny elf? Did you escape her again?”

“Harrumph.”

Bill shot up and saw a disgruntled elf standing on the far side of the table from them. 

“Oh. Hullo miz elf. Fancy seeing you here?”

Bitsy folded her thin arms. “Yous may as well be calling me Bitsy Mister Weezy. Ivy seems to be likings you.”

She pulled a chair out and climbed up on it. “Bitsy not be losing Ivy. Still not knowings how she be gettings out, but always knowing when and where now. Madam Poms be’s sewing rune trackers into -all- of Missy Ivy’s clothes. Even her socksies. Let’s Bitsy knows where she is always.”

Bill nodded and peeked down at the little girl again. 

“Don’t the other students wonder who she is? I’ve never heard anyone else talking about her?”

Bitsy looked smug for a moment. “That be’s Bitsy’s own magicking. Only people who knows about Ivy are being able to see her when she’s out of our rooms. So only student is you. Bitsy just follows her around unseen to make sure she isn’t getting into too much trouble. Is good for babies to be getting exercise and exploring.”

Bill looked at her impressed. “That is amazing magic Bitsy. I didn’t even know you could do that!”

The tiny elf gave him a big smile. “Thank you mister Weezy. Makes watching Missy Ivy much easier now.”

Ivy grabbed a hold of Bills pant leg and gave a tug. 

“Oh ho. And what can I do for you?” Bill asked as he ducked under the desk. Ivy held up her ball with an entreating expression on her face. Bill looked around the corner of the library he was sitting in. No one around. He looked at his parchment, still three inches short. With a sigh and a shrug he slid off his chair and under the table. Ivy gave a little squeal of delight and scooted away from him a bit. 

She sat with her legs outspread and rolled the ball to him. He dutifully caught it and sent it gently back to her. She laughed as she grabbed it and they repeated the process for a couple minutes. Bitsy had come down off of her chair and was watching the pair play. With Bill’s last turn she snapped her fingers and had the ball floating towards her. 

“Now Missy Ivy. Madam Poms is going to be coming back from the Hospital Wings soon. We should hurry back so that you can show her yous drawings from today.”

Ivy got a mutinous look on her face, but with a stern look from Bitsy she nodded and crawled out from under the table. Bill followed and bent down to ruffle her hair gently. “Thanks for playing with me Ivy. Brightened my day, it did.” 

Ivy gave him a smile and a wave before Bitsy took her hand and they started walking away. Bill watched as Bitsy seemed to shimmer from view and smiled to himself. He was happy he didn’t have to watch Ivy. She seemed like a handful. Much harder to keep hold of than even his twin little brothers!

He sat back down, flipped the page in his textbook and got back to his essay. 

*************************************

“Oh Mr. Weasley! May I speak with you for a moment?”

It was the last class of the last day before Christmas break, and the last thing that Bill wanted to do was stay behind and talk to Professor McGonagall. He wanted to go and finish packing his trunk and say goodbye to all his mates. 

He walked up to her desk and stood quietly. “Yes, Professor?”

Minerva sighed. “I’m afraid that I’ve had an owl from your mother. It seems that your brothers, Charles, Fred and George have come down with Pixie Pox. Your father has taken your other siblings to your Great Aunts, and your mother is nursing the boys at home. She has told me that you are welcome to go to your Aunt Muriels or stay here at Hogwarts for the holidays. It’s not wise for you to go to the Burrow as the pox is terribly contagious and more severe the older you are. Your mother and father have both had it before, as well as your Aunt.”

Bill’s heart felt like it was in his stomach. He had been looking forward to seeing all his family, especially Charlie. He had so much to tell him. His Aunt Muriel was really mean and smelled kinda funny. He didn’t want to go to her house, even if it meant seeing his dad and siblings. 

“Oh.” Was all he said. 

Minerva felt for the boy. She knew Muriel Prewitt. She was abrasive at the best of times. 

“There are always students that stay during the break lad. There are a couple older Gryffindors staying as well as a several other students from your year in other houses. You shan’t be alone if you choose to stay.”

Bill nodded slowly. “Thank you Professor. I guess I’d rather stay at Hogwarts then.”

“As you wish. I’ll owl Molly back right away. I can arrange with her to have a floo call with both her and your father on Christmas Day, if you’d like?”

Bill gave her a grateful smile. “That would be wonderful, Professor. Thank you!” 

“Good. Off you pop then. I’ll let you know the when’s and where’s before the day.”

He gave her a nod and then hurried out of the room. The excitement he had been feeling before was gone but he wasn’t too sad. At least he’d get to talk to everyone. 

**********************************************

Bill blinked awake. His dorm was empty and silent and he took his time getting up. It was his very first Christmas not at the Burrow. He smiled when he saw the pile of presents laying at the bottom of his bed. He scrambled down and started ripping paper off of them. The first was as he expected. A new sweater from his mum and dad. He felt the soft wool before pulling it over his head. 

The second one he opened was a book on rare magical creatures from Charlie. He flipped it open and found a note, telling him about how Charlie had found this book in Diagon and read some of it before deciding to send it on to him. Bill smirked. He was sure that Charlie had read it front to back before passing it on but it was still nice of him. He hoped that Charlie liked the magical drawing he had sent. He had worked with Professor Flitwick to charm the ink drawing of a Chinese Fireball to fly around the parchment. It had turned out so well that he had received extra credit on it. 

He opened another present and found a box of things from Zonkos and another book, this one on curses from different countries. He smiled at the fact that his Dad remembered that he was curious about how things like spells and curses worked in other countries. They had chatted about it during the summer, when his dad had been fiddling with something muggle stamped “Made in China.”

The rest of his presents were little gifts “from” his younger siblings. Some fudge, some candy from Honeydukes, a couple new quills and some socks. He pulled on a new pair and wiggled his toes. They were bright orange, so he guessed maybe his mum had actually let one of them pick them out. 

After putting everything away, he got dressed properly and went down to the great hall for breakfast. Only about 30 students had stayed for the Christmas break, so they had all been eating together at one table. Today was no different and he slid in next to a Ravenclaw student from the year ahead of him. 

He filled his plate and glanced at the head table, but it was mostly empty. Most of the teachers were at home with their families, he guessed. 

He was mentally counting down the time until his floo calls. Professor McGonagall had arranged it for this morning, in her rooms. “You know the way.” She had dryly remarked at the time, causing him to blush. 

He finished shoving food into his mouth and wished everyone at the table a ‘Happy Christmas’, before leaving to wander the castle for a bit. He popped back to his room and gathered the letters he had written and went to the owlery to send them. He went up to the astronomy tower to look at the view, but it was too cold. He wandered around the halls, smiling at the paintings visiting each other and celebrating the holiday. 

Finally he couldn’t wait any longer and ended up in front of the Professor's door. He nervously knocked and waited. 

Within moments it was answered and Madam Pomfrey was smiling at him from the doorway. “Good morning Mr. Weasley. Happy Christmas! Do come in.”

The rooms had been decorated with baubles and tinsel. There was a largish tree in one corner with the remains of some wrapping paper under it and a few toys. 

Professor McGonagall was sitting in an armchair with Ivy on her lap. The toddler made a squealing noise and clambered down, racing to the tree to grab one of her new toys and excitedly showed it to Bill. “Look! Look!” 

Bill crouched and inspected the figure of a chubby dragon. It let out a tiny jet of magic flame, with no heat, followed by two thin streams of smoke.

“Oh it’s wonderful Ivy! I have a brother who would have been so excited to get such a beautiful toy dragon for Christmas.” Ivy smiled at him and toddled off to her room to play. 

McGonagall smiled at the little scene. “Your calls should be coming through any moment. Madam Pomfrey and I will be in the other room to give you privacy.” Bill nodded and watched as they followed Ivy into the room and pulled the door shut. 

The fireplace made a small chiming noise and Bill excitedly sat down in front of it. Soon the sight of his mother’s face filled the flames. “Mum!”

His mother smiled. “Oh Bill! Happy Christmas love! Oh how I miss you! How has your Christmas been? Did you get your presents?”

Bill smiled wider. “I miss you too Mum. It’s been nice, but quiet. It’s strange without everyone here. I got them. Thank you so much. I’m wearing the orange socks right now.” He rolled up a pant leg to show her. “Thank whichever brother picked them out for me. I love them.” He gave a little laugh. 

Molly winced in the flames. “It was Fred. Or George. They were most insistent that it was the perfect colour.”

He laughed again. “I really do love them.” They chatted some more, Molly letting the twins and Charlie say a few words to him. He was just wrapping up the conversation when his mother trailed off. 

“Bill. Who on earth is that?”

He glanced around and saw that Ivy had snuck up behind him and was peering over his shoulder to see the fireplace. He gave a soft grin before drawing her out and pulling her onto his knee. 

“This tiny menace is Ivy Pomfrey. She lives here at the castle and is my new friend. Isn’t that right Ivy?” He gave her a small tickle and she giggled. He laughed along. “She’s forever getting loose in the hallways. It’s how I met her actually.”

Molly’s eyes widened. “A relative of Poppy’s? Why on earth didn’t one of them mention. Well hello Ivy. It’s very nice to meet you.”

Ivy turned shy and hid her face in Bills shirt before wiggling out of his lap and running back to her room.

Bill shook his head and quickly said goodbye to his mum so that the floo was free so he could talk to his dad. 

The room stayed empty of anyone else as he chatted with his dad and said hello to his younger siblings. He even had an awkward exchange with his great aunt. 

He was still sitting staring at the flames when the adults emerged from the other room. 

“Mr. Weasley?”

He jumped. “Oh I’m sorry Professor. I just got caught up in my thoughts. Thank you for letting me use the floo. It was very kind of you.” He got up and made to go to the door. 

“Play?” A tiny voice asked from around his knees. Ivy had her ball and puppy in her arms. “Um.” He looked uncertainly at Professor McGonagall. “Only if you would like to lad. If you have other plans for the day, please don’t tarry here.”

Bill thought of his empty dorm and lonely room. “No, I’d like to stay.”

He sat down on the carpeted floor away from the fire and waited until Ivy got herself settled. They took turns passing the ball back and forth again. Madam Pomfrey smiled and brought him a plate of biscuits and a warm butter beer. “Oh thank you!” He stuffed an entire biscuit in his mouth in between rolling the ball back to Ivy. 

“You are very good with her.” 

His ears went red. “Lots of practice I guess.”

They played for a few minutes more before Ivy got bored and wandered back into her room. Bill quickly finished the biscuits and his drink. 

“Thank you again for letting me use the floo. I guess I’d better be going now.” He stood up and handed his dirty dishes to Professor McGonagall. 

“It was no hardship, lad.” She watched him walk to the door. “Don’t feel obligated, but if you find yourself with nothing to do over the holidays, I’m sure Ivy would appreciate your company. Feel free to drop by.”

Bill turned back to her. “Thank you professor. I’ll keep it in mind. She’s sure a happy kid, I like spending time with her.” He slipped out, shutting the door behind him. 

Minerva remembered the scared, sad little girl from the beginning of the summer and was just happy that she seemed to be healing and willing to trust people.

**Author's Note:**

> What do you think so far.
> 
> I am taking liberties with Transfiguration for my own needs.


End file.
